Suprabhatam ( sa, सुप्रभातम्, lit=auspicious dawn, translit=Suprabhātam) is a

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

prayer of the ''Suprabhātakāvya'' genre. It is a collection of

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn ...

s or verses recited early morning to awaken the deity in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or ''dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global po ...

. The

metre The metre ( British spelling) or meter ( American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its p ...

chosen for a Suprabhātam poem is usually ''Vasantatilaka''. The most well-known Suprabhātam work is the Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam recited to awaken the deity

Venkateswara Venkateswara, also known by various other names, is a form of the Hindu god Vishnu. Venkateswara is the presiding deity of the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, located in Tirupati, Sri Balaji District, Andhra Pradesh, India. Etymology Venkatesw ...

. A rendition of the poem by renowned Carnatic vocalist M. S. Subbulakshmi is extremely popular which is played daily in many homes and temples (especially

Tirumala Tirupati Sri Venkateswara Swami Vaari Temple is a Hindu temple situated in the hill town of Tirumala at Tirupati in Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh, India. The Temple is dedicated to Venkateswara, a form of Vishnu, who is believed to have appeared ...

) in the wee hours of morning.

History

The genre of Suprabhātakāvya traces its origin to a single verse (1.23.2) in the Bālakāṇḍa of

Vālmīki Valmiki (; Sanskrit: वाल्मीकि, ) is celebrated as the harbinger-poet in Sanskrit literature. The epic ''Ramayana'', dated variously from the 5th century BCE to first century BCE, is attributed to him, based on the attributio ...

Rāmāyaṇa The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages e ...

, where Viśvāmitra calls out to Rāma to wake up.

Devanagari Devanagari ( ; , , Sanskrit pronunciation: ), also called Nagari (),Kathleen Kuiper (2010), The Culture of India, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, , page 83 is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental writing system), based on the a ...

कौसल्यासुप्रजा राम पूर्वा संध्या प्रवर्तते । उत्तिष्ठ नरशार्दूल कर्त्तव्यं दैवमाह्निकम् ॥ IAST kausalyāsuprajā rāma pūrvā sandhyā pravartate । uttiṣṭha naraśārdūla karttavyaṃ daivamāhnikam ॥ Translation, 1.23.2 O Rāma, the noble son of Kausalyā! The Sandhyā of the East commences. O! best of men (Purushottama)! Wake up, the daily duties have to be performed. The Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam begins with this very verse.

Venkatesha Suprabhatam

The Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam was composed sometime between 1420 and 1432 C.E. by ''Prativādibhayaṅkara'' Śrī Anantācārya (also known as Annangaracharyar, and P B Annan). The poet was a disciple of Swami Manavala Mamuni, who was himself a disciple of

Ramanuja Ramanuja (Middle Tamil: Rāmāṉujam; Classical Sanskrit: Rāmanuja; 1017 CE – 1137 CE; ; ), also known as Ramanujacharya, was an Indian Hindu philosopher, guru and a social reformer. He is noted to be one of the most important exponents o ...

. The Venkatesha Suprabhatam consists of four sections: Suprabhatam, Sri Venkatesa Stothram, Prapatti, and Mangalasasanam.

Text and meaning

Other Suprabhatam Works

There are many other lesser-known Suprabhātam works apart from the Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam. Some of these are - * ''Śrīvighneśvarasuprabhātam''. A Suprabhāta poem eulogizing

Gaṇeśa Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu ...

. * ''Śrīsiddhivināyakasuprabhātam''. A Suprabhāta poem eulogizing Siddhivināyaka. Composed by M. Ramakrishna Bhat, retired professor of Benares Hindu University. * ''Śrīkāśīviśvanāthasuprabhātam''. A Suprabhāta poem eulogizing Kashi Vishwanath. * '' Śrīsītārāmasuprabhātam''. A Suprabhāta poem eulogizing

Sītā Sita (; ) also called as Janaki and Vaidehi is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic, ''Ramayana''. She is the consort of Rama, the avatar of the god Vishnu, and is regarded as a form of Vishnu's consort, Lakshmi. She ...

and Rāma. Composed by

Jagadguru Rambhadracharya Jagadguru Ramanandacharya Swami Rambhadracharya (born Pandit Giridhar on 14 January 1950) is an Indian Hindu spiritual leader, educator, Sanskrit scholar, polyglot, poet, author, textual commentator, philosopher, composer, singer, playwrigh ...

Notes

References

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External links

{{wikisourcelang, sa, श्रीवेङ्कटेशसुप्रभातम्, Full text in Samskrit Text
Telugu Rendering in WikiSourceDevanagari Rendering
Hindu music Hindu prayer and meditation